"The Definition of Insanity "

9 of Swords, guilt anxiety
"the dagger of the mind"
from RWCS by US GAMES

The standard meaning of insanity can be located in any of a dozen dictionaries.  I learned the only significant definition for this word in a sales training class.  The definition of insanity is to keep repeating the same unsuccessful group of actions and to expect a successful outcome each time.  A tarot spread will make you face the inevitability that comes from repeating unsuccessful patterns in your life.  How many times do we ask ourselves, “Why do I always get these cards?” Simple - your life, your choices.  Don’t shoot me, I’m just the tarot reader.  Whether your trials come from the pressure you exert upon yourself (swords), emotional quagmires that you persist in wading into (cups), ill-conceived, irrational moves that take you nowhere (wands), or greed and avarice (pentacles), tarot will show you the patterns of your particular dance.  

The Moon - illusion
the crayfish crawling from the water
represents the subconscious
from RWSC by US Games ©

The founder of analytical psychology, Carl Jung, found this to be true and often recommended tarot journaling for patients.  Where Freud believed the origins of most psychological conditions were sexual in nature, Jung favored the idea that all people held an intrinsic spiritualism and that a healthy psyche had all its parts integrated.  A rather simplistic explanation on my part, I’m afraid.  Jung gave us concepts such as, collective consciousness, synchronicity and my personal favorite, archetypes.  He used dream analysis and believed that symbolism was a huge component of the human mind (true that) and therefore, the key to unlocking the subconscious.

Tarot illuminates your path.  It acts as your guide through

The Hermit, seeker of inner truth
from RWCS by US Games©

your present situation, then takes your actions, if unaltered, to an inescapable conclusion.  If you don’t like the pictures the tarot spread shows you, then make different choices – break your pattern and you change that pesky outcome row.  Tarot’s responsibility is to show you the journey of your soul, yours, particular to you, not the person(s), situation, or event that initially led you to seek answers.  

The next few years promise to be filled with societal and global change.  This is the natural order of things and pretty darned exciting stuff to boot.  Prepare yourself by asserting control over your own actions.  By taking accountability for your life, you free yourself to become who and what you were meant to be. (I know, I know – this is my mantra) Step firmly out into the world and embrace your destiny, but know that it’s you who gives destiny a helping hand.

LADY ORACLE 

Here's a link for further info on Carl Jung

Check out this book on tarot journaling  or, 

this one too.

Take a look at tarot symbolism as well!

Let me know what you think!

www.ladyoracle.net

Crazy 8s - Tarot's Movable Feast

In tarot’s Minor Arcana, eights are concerned with aspects of

8 of Wands Lo Scarebo's "Tarot of the Pagan Cats"©
Very much tarot, but oh, so, catlike!

movement within your life.  Movement refers to change that shifts you into a different set of circumstances, either internal or external.  The RWCS deck depicts the Eight of Wands as wands that have arced through the sky and are now coming back to earth.  This card signifies information or news that leads to the successful completion of business matters, affairs of the heart or a particular goal.  Depending on the situation, this message can feel like “Skyrockets in flight,” or “Incoming.”   There is also an element of timing implied with this card. Let the timing of the situation reveal itself to you.  Don’t rush your fences and your outcome will be successful.  

8 of Cups from Rome Choi's
remarkable "Dreaming Way Tarot"©

Cups deal with emotions and spiritual aspects of life. RWSC shows you eight cups stacked into a prymid form and setting on a beach.  They are not stable.  What else can you expect when you try to build a structure on shifting sand?  In the background we see a figure leaving.  He glances over this shoulder at the cups as he departs, indicating regret.  Here’s the deal.  The situation, or relationship is over.  Stick the proverbial fork in it.  This card also comes with a promise.  You’re leaving behind a situation or relationship that was not a good fit and you are heading onwards and upwards where solid ground will allow you to build a firm foundation.  Bigger and better, baby, bigger and better.

Swords - gloomy doomy and in your face.  Swords show you

8 of Swords - the restricted lady
from RWCS by US Games®

the patterns in your mind with all their subtle shading and complexities. Swords can be upsetting to us in a reading because we are often not comfortable with what we see in the images that they mirror.  Still, mirrors are valuable.  They keep us from leaving the house with spinach in your teeth if nothing else.  In RWCS Eight of Swords we find a damsel in distress - captured, bound and encircled with swords.  Restriction.  What ensnares you?  Why, nothing less than your own fruitful imagination.  Look at the lady again.  She’s blindfolded, but her bonds are loose enough to break.  The swords do not completely encircle her and to top it all off, there’s no one around to prevent her escape.  That’s the truth about most restrictions - you create them in your own mind.

8 of Pentacle from the incomparable
"Wizard's Tarot"© by Corrine Kenner
and John J. Blumen

In Pentacles, the eight shows us an apprentice working hard to become a craftsman in his own right.  Financial growth through industry and mastery of skills.  He’s got a lot of pentacles there and he’s worked tirelessly to produce them.  The deeper lesson here is gained by asking yourself two questions:  Am I working for the end product, or for a deeper sense of satisfaction?  Am I so attached to outcome, that I’m missing the significance of my journey?  How you do something tells you more about why you do it in the first place.

Tarots eights hold promise for you.  They can reassure you, unlock your potential and give you a completely new take on a situation.  The important thing to remember is that all forward movement counts.

LADY ORACLE

Links I Love:  Check out Cathy Rose!  I love her astrological information!  Always upbeat and proactive.  Check her out!

http://www.roseastrology.com/

Featured decks available through me.  Go ahead – email me!
You know you want to!